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Being stuck in your current job can impact your emotional and physical well-being. The reasons for this may include lack of growth opportunities, low income, your desire to explore new work domains or your inclination towards pursuing your passion. Changing careers can be challenging. Nonetheless, with the correct industry evaluation, you can take the right first step.
The professional services industry has seen a steady rise in the last couple of years. However, there has been a massive change in spending and human behavior during the pandemic. As a result, this industry has undergone a massive change in customer engagement. Consequently, companies have also modified their recruitment policies to suit the current demands better, such as accommodating remote work settings. To help you evaluate and identify whether this industry is suitable for you, we will further discuss different career paths, market trends, and the skill sets required to pursue a successful career in this domain.
1) Understanding the Professional Services industry
We suggest analyzing an industry in terms of professional, personal, and monetary growth before making a switch. Some of the common professions in the professional services industry are architecture, law, medicine, engineering, and finance. However, no matter what line you choose, you need to have a stronghold over the technical skill sets needed for the job. Let’s have a look at some of these roles in detail below.
- Architecture: Design development, architecture, construction, and administration
- Medicine: Physicians, practitioners, nurses, pharmacists, medical technologists, and therapists
- Law: Advocates, lawyers, judges, practitioners, and accountants
- Engineering: IT services, developers, embedded engineers, machinery managers, steam operators, and researchers
- Finance: Tax consultants, accountants, business advisors, actuaries, auditing, investment bankers, and legal services
2) Understanding the skills required
Let’s assume you want to switch to an architecture career path in the professional services industry. In this case, the next steps for you would be to perform a thorough analysis of the market trends, popular MNCs, required skills, and the practical challenges to overcome. You would also require a related degree and a stronghold on skills like analytical aptitude, CAD, model making, project management, and data analysis. Similarly, to start your career as a financial analyst, knowledge of investment banking, trading laws, profits and losses, budgeting, auditing, data interpretation, and market analysis will take you a long way.
Every role will have its own set of technical skills that you will have to master. Additionally, having exceptional problem-solving skills and the ability to work collaboratively will help you do your job efficiently. Furthermore, developing a learning mindset to adapt quickly can enhance your productivity and performance. The professional services industry will also have you trained for analytical thinking and high emotional intelligence. Some other crucial skills to make a mark in this industry are interpersonal and communication skills, resilience, teamwork, project management, commercial awareness, and your ability to identify potential revenue-multiplying opportunities.
3) How do I get started?
The professional services industry is vast. There are opportunities at every level. If you are just starting out, look for relevant courses on related domain-specific topics. There are several courses and blogs on websites like The Legal 500 for law, MIT OpenCourseWare for engineering, The MedNet for medicine, and Investopedia for finance that you can check out. After pursuing your online course, you should start looking for internship opportunities or research projects to gain practical experience working in the industry. We also suggest connecting with professionals on LinkedIn to understand how the industry works and develop relationships to help you progress.
Top employers in the industry
Consultancy firms like McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, and Ernst & Young are among the top employers within the professional services industry. You might want to check out employee reviews on Glassdoor before applying for your target roles. You may even speak to professionals who are currently working or have worked for these employers in the past. It will give you a better idea of the industry, company culture, and job opportunities.
Changing careers can be challenging. You may require guidance on upcoming career trends, the choice to make between a technical and a managerial role, or job search tools. If you are looking for any support on your job search, contact us today! We will be more than happy to help you.
